Wilson Chipangura, Guest Reporter
TOKYO – Zimbabwe’s first black swimmer at the Olympics, Donata Katai, narrowly missed out on the 100m backstroke semi-final berth even after clocking a heat-winning time of 1:02:73 which was outside the 1:00:04 cut-off.
It may be heartbreak for the 17-year-old lad but she created a legacy at the Tokyo Olympics.
Zimbabweans had something to cheer about considering it has been a long time since someone achieved such a feet since the days of a prime Kirsty Coventry, a gold medalist at the 2008 Olympics.
Coincidentally, Coventry, who now heads the country’s Sports ministry was also a swimmer.
On Sunday, the troubled southern African nation had the opportunity to rally behind a rookie by the name Donata Katai and she didn’t disappoint, coming first in her heat ahead of two close rivals.
Unfortunately, the fortune lady didn’t smile enough to guarantee Katai a place in the semi-finals even though she broke her personal best.
Patel Maana Patel from India came second in the same heat clocking 1:05:20 while Ince Kimberly from Granada settled for third position after posting a time of 1:10:24.
